While its pre-rendered 2D backgrounds may show their age, the gameplay remains incredibly sharp. For those looking for the best modern experience, the Rise of Nations: Extended Edition is available on platforms like Steam and Xbox Game Pass , offering updated graphics and full multiplayer support for modern PCs.
: This campaign layer plays like the board game Risk , where you move armies across a global map and engage in RTS battles for individual territories.
The game is celebrated for its deep mechanics that reward careful planning just as much as quick clicking.
Unlike many of its contemporaries that focus on a single historical era, Rise of Nations lets you witness the entire evolution of human warfare. You can start a match with sling-wielding warriors and end it with cruise missiles and stealth bombers.
: Choose from 24 unique civilizations (including the six added in Thrones and Patriots ), each with distinct "Nation Powers" and unique units.
: Battles are fought over "National Borders," which expand as you build cities and research civic technologies. Invading enemy territory without supply wagons causes units to take attrition damage, forcing you to plan your offensives carefully.
Released during the "golden age" of real-time strategy (RTS) games, remains a masterclass in genre-bending innovation. By fusing the tactical, fast-paced combat of an RTS with the grand scope and economic complexity of turn-based classics like Civilization , it offers an experience that spans from the Stone Age to the Information Age. This Gold Edition bundle includes both the original game and the Thrones and Patriots expansion, making it the definitive way to experience the series' peak. A Truly Global Scope
: Research through 8 different ages, watching your cities and technology transform in real-time.
